ReligionThe 4th century

Religion in the 4th century

Every event in the Terralore archive tagged religion — faiths, institutions and religious change, narrowed to the 4th century — 11 of them, drawn from 9 nations, running from 301 to 396. Each entry keeps the sources it was verified against and links back to the chronicle it came from.

Events
11
Nations
9
Earliest
301
Latest
396
Asia
6
Europe
3
Africa
2

Every entry below is the same record, with the same sources, as the one on its nation’s chronicle.

  1. Asia

    Armenia

    Armenia adopts Christianity

    King Tiridates III proclaimed Christianity the religion of his kingdom after his conversion by Gregory the Illuminator, making Armenia the first nation to adopt Christianity as its state religion.

    Era: The First Christian Nation and the Alphabet

    Sources: The Early Christianization of Armenia · World History Encyclopedia, Cathedral and Churches of Echmiatsin and the Archaeological Site of Zvartnots · UNESCO World Heritage Centre, Tiridates III, king of Armenia · Encyclopædia Britannica

  2. Asia

    Armenia

    Mother Cathedral of Echmiatsin

    The earliest of Armenia's great domed churches, the Mother Cathedral of Echmiatsin, was traditionally built by Tiridates III and Gregory the Illuminator; it remains the seat of the Armenian Apostolic Church.

    Era: The First Christian Nation and the Alphabet

    Sources: Cathedral and Churches of Echmiatsin and the Archaeological Site of Zvartnots · UNESCO World Heritage Centre

  3. Asia

    Azerbaijan

    Caucasian Albania adopts Christianity

    King Urnayr made Christianity the state religion of Caucasian Albania, which kept its own church and alphabet as a Sasanian province until the Arab conquests.

    Era: Gobustan, Caucasian Albania and the land of fire

    Sources: Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Georgia: Country Studies (ed. Glenn E. Curtis) · Library of Congress, Federal Research Division

  4. Europe

    Italy

    Edict of Milan and the rise of Christianity

    Constantine and Licinius granted toleration to Christianity, beginning its transformation from a persecuted faith into the dominant religion of the Roman world.

    Era: The Roman Republic and Empire

    Sources: Italy (country overview and history) · Encyclopaedia Britannica

  5. Asia

    Palestine

    A Christian holy land

    Following Constantine's conversion, Palestine became a centre of Christian pilgrimage; churches were built over sites venerated as those of Jesus's life, death, and resurrection.

    Era: Roman, Byzantine, and the Name "Palaestina"

    Sources: Palestine - region, history · Encyclopaedia Britannica

  6. Africa

    Ethiopia

    King Ezana adopts Christianity

    Ezana converts to Christianity, reportedly under the influence of Frumentius; his coins replace pagan emblems with the cross, making Aksum one of the world's earliest Christian states.

    Era: The Kingdom of Aksum and Early Christianity

    Sources: African Christianity in Ethiopia · The Metropolitan Museum of Art, King Ezana of Axum (?–360 CE) · BlackPast.org

  7. Europe

    Vatican City

    Constantine builds Old St Peter's Basilica

    The emperor Constantine raised a great basilica over the traditional tomb of Peter on the Vatican Hill, enclosing the shrine and making the site the chief sanctuary of Western Christendom.

    Era: The Tomb of Peter and the First Basilica

    Sources: The Tomb of Saint Peter · Fabbrica di San Pietro / basilicasanpietro.va, St. Peter's Basilica · Encyclopaedia Britannica

  8. Asia

    Georgia

    Iberia adopts Christianity

    Through the preaching of St Nino, King Mirian III of Iberia adopted Christianity as the state religion, making Georgia one of the world's oldest Christian states.

    Era: The Conversion of Iberia and an Early Christian State

    Sources: Saint Nino · Encyclopaedia Britannica, Historical Monuments of Mtskheta · UNESCO World Heritage Centre, History of Georgia · Encyclopaedia Britannica

  9. Asia

    South Korea

    Introduction of Buddhism

    Buddhism is officially adopted in Goguryeo and spreads through the kingdoms, becoming a major force in art, statecraft, and religious life.

    Era: Gojoseon and the Three Kingdoms

    Sources: Three Kingdoms period · Encyclopaedia Britannica, Korea (history) · Encyclopaedia Britannica

  10. Europe

    Vatican City

    The bishops of Rome and apostolic succession

    The popes were regarded as successors of Peter as bishops of Rome, a claim founded on the doctrine of apostolic succession that linked their authority to the apostle buried at the Vatican.

    Era: The Tomb of Peter and the First Basilica

    Sources: Papacy · Encyclopaedia Britannica, Apostolic succession · Encyclopaedia Britannica

  11. Africa

    Algeria

    Augustine, bishop of Hippo

    Augustine serves as bishop of Hippo Regius from about 395 until his death in 430, writing the Confessions and City of God and shaping Western Christian thought.

    Era: Numidia, Carthage and Roman Africa

    Sources: History of Algeria · Encyclopaedia Britannica, The Splendours of Roman Algeria · World History Encyclopedia